Citizen Ruth doesn't need a rosebud

One of the greatest risks in making satire is the characters: Often, they must be devoid of any likable aspects. Works of satire often face criticisms for not telling the "happy side" of the story, but the happy side is not the focus. Satire is about taking reality and exaggerating its most despicable elements for emphasis. If you approach Alexander Payne's directorial debut, Citizen Ruth, from that angle, it's one of the best satires of the last 20 years.

There truly isn't anyone to root for. Laura Dern stars as the vagrant huffer Ruth Stoops, recklessly addicted to sniffing aerosol chemicals and glue to get high. She's in jail for the umpteenth time and has discovered that she's pregnant for the fifth time (she was declared unfit to be a mother for her other children). A judge hints to her that if she gets an abortion, he'll drop his felony charges against her (which include endangering her fetus through her drug addiction). Discovering this, an anti-abortion group -- "Baby Savers" (perhaps the most perfect activist name Payne and cowriter Jim Taylor could have developed) -- bails her out and takes her in. But "there's a war going on" -- a pro-choice division also wants to adopt Ruth and help pay for an abortion.

Stereotypes about all sides are exploited ruthlessly here. The pro-lifers are gun-toting, vigil-holding, Jesus-worshipping zombies, while the pro-choicers are moon-serenading, vegetarian lesbians. And in the center is Ruth, whom Payne portrays as truly destitute -- no matter how well people treat her, she still finds way to inhale whatever's under their kitchen sink. But there's a truth to all of this: These ultra-conservative and ultra-liberal factions, if you watch documentaries such as Tony Kaye's supreme Lake of Fire, are generally the rowdy ones that you see in the media. And the women whom they exploit are much like Ruth, capable of changing their future, but vastly preferring the easy route. And the script's depiction of these characters isn't so bad. There are human moments where Ruth's caretakers, conservative or liberal, do want to make sure that Ruth is healthy, regardless of what happens.

If you've seen Blue Velvet or Inland Empire, Dern's capabilities as an actress are apparent, and she's never been funnier than here in her portrayal of the brain-dead Ruth. But other performers also impress, such as character actor Kurtwood Smith's role as Norm Stoney, a horny pro-lifer, or Swoosie Kurtz's surprise turn-around half-way through the film. And the detail that Payne and his production team have put into the film is exemplary. The pro-choicers provide Ruth with a Frida Kahlo shirt while she's under their wing (Kahlo was bisexual). Pro-vegetarian stickers adorn their walls. The pro-lifers' homes are decorated with Jesus paraphernalia. It wouldn't be so funny if it weren't so hidden, demonstrating Payne's ingenious penchant for subtlety.

Rating: The void between a B+ and an A-